Tim Danson, lawyer for the families of Leslie Mahaffy and Kristen French, is demanding a viewing of the new Hollywood movie Deadly, according to an article on CNews. The movie depicts the twisted relationship of convicted child rapists and murders Paul Bernardo and Karla Holmolka. The tagline for the movie, which is in post production, is "till death do us partake".

I was not aware that a movie such as this was being made. My immediate visceral reaction was one of absolute disgust. Although movies and television shows have been based on true crime in the past, and will continue as such in the future, this is different. This movie is not based on the horrific events, it depicts them. Bernardo and Holmolka's names are used in the movie. The official synopsis claims, "Every scene of the film was derived from events transcribed in court testimony using police reports, interviews between Karla and her psychiatrist, and videotape of the crimes shot by the perpetrators themselves". The crimes themselves are to be simulated using young actresses.

This was a case that absolutely shook Canada and in a way robbed a country of its innocence. The families fought to have those videotapes destroyed and are now feeling that their daughters are once again being victimized by having their final days re-enacted and available for all the world to see over and over again.

It certainly does not seem right to inflict further pain on the families of the victims simply to fill the pockets of the American entertainment industry.

I'm speechless. It's such a disturbing thought that this case would be made into a movie.

What justification do they give for reviving it? Some horrible events are worth reenacting to allow people to understand history and avoid it repeating itself. But in this case, it won't have any kind of positive impact on society.

I just deleted my previous comment because I noticed a spelling error. Who knew that Blogger would rat me out on it by pointing out that a comment had been removed? LOL

Here is what I deleted, hopefully without spelling mistakes!

I completely agree with you Vero.

My best guess as to justification for making this movie is money. Everything in life seems to come down to three things - money, sex, and power. (How jaded must I sound?)

The Hollywood entertainment industry doesn't care about what impact their movie has on the audience or what impact it has on the families whom they base their movies off of. They only care about filling seats in the theatre.

This is another bit taken off of the Deadly website: "A deeply disturbing true story. Paul Bernardo and Karla Homolka’s psychological dance with death and depravity – faithfully recreated here in stunning performances by Misha Collins and Laura Prepon – will haunt you forever…because it’s true.".

How is that for marketing? Does that not sound like the producers know that it will affect people negatively? They also know that there is an audience of people who will pay to be forever disturbed by the details of those gruesome crimes and are hoping to cash in on that.

Just looking at the photos for the movie is disturbing. To see the shot of the young actress portraying Kristen French in the car with the couple is just heartbreaking. It angers me to think of anyone profiting off of those horrific murders of children.

I certainly hope that Canadian theatre owners take a stand and do not allow this movie to be shown in their theatres. I am all for some censorship in this case.

I was one of the original netizens...back in the days before browsers.

As such, I was privy to details about this case that were posted online circa 1992 (via newsgroups). Upon reading the two paragraphs or so that a colleague had directed a few of us to read I left the office and have not discussed the matter from that time until this week (seriously).

I am posting this comment because this week, 13 years later, I began crying when trying to describe in general what I had read to a friend who had heard of this movie too. My friend wanted to know what I had read. I had to generalize...to go into specifics would probably make me barf. And remember, I read two paragraphs.

How's that for a taste of a movie that should never have even been considered...let alone produced. There are some seriously sick money grabbers out there.

I can not imagine what it was that you read, nor do I want to. It was clearly horrific.

I find it to be remarkably telling that you are still affected today by two paragraphs of text that your read 13 years ago. As you said, this was definitely a movie that should never have been considered. I sincerely hope that Canadians will boycott this film.

Funny that someone who found this page via a Google hit for "Karla Homolka sightings" would leave a comment that says relax. ;) LOL

There is a major difference between you and I, "Anonymous". To someone like yourself in Massachusetts, this is *just* another true crime movie. For those who lived in fear while the Scarborough Rapist was on the loose and while children were abducted, this was not a movie.

These were crimes that completely rocked a nation and has left a deep scar as a result. Your perspective as someone watching a movie is quite different from someone who saw these crimes unfold and then play out through the judicial system, or someone who now lives next door to Homolka, or heaven forbid, someone who lost a child to these monsters.